Our People

Laura Evis is a Senior Lecturer in Forensic Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Exeter. She is a forensic bioarchaeologist who specialises in the adaptation and application of archaeological and osteological techniques to forensic and humanitarian investigations. She has worked in both the academic and commercial archaeological sectors since 2009 and is particularly interested in community engagement and outreach projects.

Laura was appointed Chair of the Board of Trustees in 2024, having previously served as Vice Chair.

Karen Ann Pilling is an experienced Chief People Officer, Executive Lead, and Non-Executive Director, with a strong track record in developing and delivering people strategies across UK and global organisations. She is currently Chief People Officer at Severn Group (Blue Water Energy LLP Private Equity), where she serves on the Executive Committee, leads the global People Function, and chairs ESG and Remuneration Committees.

Previously, she was People Director at Arsenal Football Club, establishing the HR function and developing People, EDI, and Safeguarding strategies. Her earlier board-level experience spans the airline sector with easyJet and First Choice. She also serves as NED and EDI advisor for the Premier League, The Football Association, Nordoff & Robbins, and Cotswold Archaeology. Karen holds a BA in Archaeology, an MSc in Human Resources Management, and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Nick is Founding Partner of Murmuration Partners, a purpose-led consultancy and coaching practice supporting businesses, charities, and individuals to discover, define, and deliver on their purpose. He is also Chief Strategy and Impact Officer at Elephants Child, advising small and medium-sized enterprises on sustainable, ESG-driven growth.

A qualified investment professional with significant governance experience as executive, non-executive, and trustee, Nick specialises in strategic planning, risk, and organisational purpose. Passionate about local history, archaeology, and the environment, he enjoys building partnerships that strengthen communities. Born and based in the Cotswolds, Nick can often be found out hiking and exploring historic landscapes.

LinkedIn: Nick Hunt

Christopher Young now works as a consultant on heritage management, having retired from English Heritage in 2014 after many years as their Head of International Advice. He was previously a Regional Director and before that an Inspector of Ancient Monuments. He has worked extensively on matters relating to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in the UK and overseas. Christopher is a Visiting Professor at the Institute of Sustainable Heritage, University College London.

Angus spent most of his professional career as a management consultant with IBM Global Business Services and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He was responsible for the sale and delivery of complex global technology solutions and services to telecom, media and entertainment clients and led large multi-national, multi-functional teams. He is a Fellow and licensed member in practice of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

He graduated from the University of Durham with a degree in Natural Sciences with majors in Archaeological Science and Anthropology. He is a member of the Council for British Archaeology and the Berkshire Archaeology Society.

John recently concluded his 38 year career in archaeology having left Cotswold Archaeology after nine years, and having been amongst other things, Commercial Director and Deputy Chief Executive. Prior to that were fourteen years at Wessex Archaeology as a member of the Senior Management Group, focussed on company growth, opening of new offices and development of joint ventures. Formative years were spent working in Southwark and Lambeth and excavating, directing and managing Roman and medieval urban sites, followed by five years in the Southwark Council Planning Department as their Archaeology Officer. John is currently a Director of a Community Benefit Society which recently bought and opened his local village pub, and which he is enjoying enormously!

Kevin Gleeson is a Chartered Town Planner. Working for the Planning Inspectorate for the past 10 years his primary focus has been on examining applications for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects as well as conducting a variety of planning appeals and other specialist casework. More recently he has been involved in the appointment, training and management of Inspectors.

Previous experience has included over 15 years in consultancy and over 10 years in local government. For the Royal Town Planning Institute, Kevin has been an assessor of applicants’ professional competence and is currently involved in overseeing the effectiveness of two university planning schools in delivering planning education.

Clare Kirk has had a 20-year career in marketing, spending 16 years in Silicon Valley, California, before returning to the UK in 2017. She helped evolve Epocrates from a startup to America’s leading provider of mobile medical applications and has supported a variety of companies as an independent branding and communications consultant. Clare has a passion for history.

Sue Parsons is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and a qualified Project Manager. Sue worked in the electricity generation and nuclear decommissioning industry for nearly 40 years. She is a Member of Council for CIMA and Chairman of the Winterbourne medieval Barn Trust and was appointed as a Trustee in 2014.

Alison has experience of governance, leadership, strategy, engagement, partnerships and impact from her roles with the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) part of UK Research & Innovation and from working in legal services regulation. She’s currently helping spin out a new venture in life sciences from Warwick University and will happily chat about UK grown beans (and tomatoes) at length.

Alison started out as a lawyer, working in the courts before joining the public service in Australia. She lived in Bangladesh for two and a half years before coming to the UK, working with national NGOs and undertaking her Masters in Social Policy and Planning while there. Alison loves history, stories and engaging people with great research.

Keith is Professor of Geoarchaeology at the University of Winchester, while between 1997 and 2019 he was Lecturer, Senior Lecturer and Reader in Environmental Archaeology at the same institution. His teaching includes the application of Earth science techniques in archaeology, early prehistory and geomatics, while his research interests are the palaeolithic and the prospection of deeply stratified sites. Keith is also (since 2005) Director of the ARCA geoearchaeology consultancy and has previously worked commercially as a geoarchaeologist/environmental archaeologist at University College London, the Museum of London Archaeology Service and Cotswold Archaeological Trust. He is a Member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists.

Neil gained a first class degree in archaeology from Newcastle University in 1984 before starting work in professional archaeology. He went straight from University to direct excavations on Hadrian’s Wall for English Heritage and spent a number of happy years developing a specialism in Roman archaeology whilst working in the North East.

He moved on to Exeter Museum before being appointed Archaeological Manager at Cotswold Archaeology in 1991. During his time at the helm Neil has seen the company grow to become one of the UK’s largest archaeological contractors. Neil has overseen and driven that growth and development and continues to ensure that Cotswold Archaeology is a successful, innovative and growing company delivering high quality work.

In addition to his managerial duties Neil maintains his interest in Roman archaeology and continues to publish widely. He continues to lead on the development and implementation of major collaborative research initiatives, building on the success of projects such as the Roman Grey Literature Project in collaboration with the University of Reading, and Exeter: A Place in Time with the University of Exeter.

Neil plays an active role in professional citizenship activities to further the heritage sector. He was Chairman of the Roman Research Trust (a grant giving charity) from 2017 to 2023, President of the Bristol & Gloucestershire Archaeological Society for 2017-2018 and President of the Devon Archaeological Society for 2025-2027. He was also Chairman of Cobalt Health, a medical imaging charity, between 2019 and 2023. Neil is a Visiting Research Fellow in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Reading.

Stuart joined Cotswold Archaeology in 2005 as an Archaeologist and progressed through the company to become Commercial Director and Director of Fieldwork in 2021, followed by Chief Operating Officer in 2026. He is responsible for delivering the company’s business strategy, whilst overseeing the trading operations of the company to ensure these are delivered profitably and safely, and are provided to the highest levels of quality. He is responsible for the profitable delivery of our major contracts and the cohesion and functionality of projects delivered from our four offices. This role involves the approval of our largest and most complex tenders. Stuart is the Senior Management Team champion for Occupational Health and Safety, a Member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists (MCIfA) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Antiquaries (FSA).

Stuart has an extensive track record in directing and managing major projects, especially those associated with infrastructure schemes. Examples of his projects include Lower Thames Crossing, Essex and Kent; Sizewell C Power Station, Suffolk; A417 Missing Link Dual Carriageway, Gloucestershire; the London to West Midlands section of the HS2 Railway; and the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon Bypass.

Donna trained as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Andersen in London. After qualifying she took up an internal audit position at the BBC which led to the position of Financial Controller at Pact (Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television). She worked in the film and television industry in London for 12 years before moving to the Cotswolds with her husband and young family. In 2009 she joined Cotswold Archaeology as Finance Director and with the help of her Finance Team is responsible for overseeing all financial matters. As a member of the Senior Management Team she has responsibility for contributing to the success and healthy financial growth of the company.

Rob has been with Cotswold Archaeology since 2011, leading the Consultancy Department since 2013.

An archaeology graduate from Bournemouth University, Rob worked as a field archaeologist in London before joining Atkins in 2001 as a Heritage Consultant. Rob is an expert in assessing the impact of new developments on buried archaeology, historic buildings and historic landscapes. He has prepared multiple proofs of evidence, and regularly acts as an expert witness on heritage matters. Recent commissions include advising on renovations to listed dwellings, a large residential development within the setting of a castle, and a major off-shore wind farm. He is at the forefront of developing best practice and industry guidance. He devised, on behalf of Historic England, the methodology for assessing the effect of intrusive noise on heritage assets, and he is currently part of an advisory panel directing the production of a new CIfA / IHBC / IEMA document on the Principles of Cultural Heritage Impact Assessment. Rob also has authored several heritage management plans in the UK and a management plan for the World Heritage Site of Bahla Fort and Oasis in Oman.

Samantha is a Chartered Member of the CIPD. After qualifying she worked as HR Business Partner within Anglian Water before moving to Wave Utilities as their HR Manager upon the opening-up of the water retail market in 2017. Samantha joined the leadership team at Cotswold Archaeology in December 2022 as our People Director.

A qualified Living Leader and Insights practitioner her focus is to build people strategies that support Cotswold Archaeology’s mission of increasing public awareness and appreciation of the past, together with ensuring the continued well-being and development of our people.

Martin has been a professional archaeologist for over 30 years. After graduating in archaeology from Leicester University in 1987 he worked as a Field Archaeologist with the Leicestershire Archaeology Unit and then with the Department of Urban Archaeology at the Museum of London, before joining Exeter Archaeology in 1994, becoming a Project Manager in 1998. Martin joined Cotswold Archaeology in 2000 and became Head of Publications in 2003, a department that includes our Post-Excavation, Finds, Environmental, Illustration and Archives teams.

Martin has particular expertise in medieval and Post-medieval urban archaeology, and in monastic archaeology. His publications include major excavations in Plymouth and Bristol, and he is currently involved in bringing excavations in Gloucester and Bath to publication. He has also worked abroad in Norway and Ethiopia.

John started his professional career after graduating with an MSc in Operations Research, originally working in defence consultancy before moving into IT. The early part of John’s career was focused on managing technology projects in a variety of roles with companies in the commercial and Utilities sectors, including Sony, Reed Elsevier and Thames Water. Over the last decade or so, John has worked in senior digital, data and technology roles, in the NGO, membership and charity sectors, including CTO/CIO roles at Christian Aid and Salvation Army International. He has an MBA from Imperial College.

John joined CA in June 2026 as Director of Technology, providing unified leadership across CA’s infrastructure, digital systems and business technology. John will initially focus on ensuring the organisation’s technology estate is stable, resilient, secure and aligned to strategic priorities, and will also be setting out an overall technology strategy and roadmap, to align with the organisation’s 2025-2030 Strategic Plan.